Letter to the Editor re: "A Lone Woman Takes on Columbia"

Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2003 13:42:59 -0400

From: Stephanie Singer <webbiz@symmetrysinger.com>

To: letters@chronicle.com

To the Editor:

Bravo for Graciela Chichilnisky ("A Lone Woman Takes on Columbia,"

10/17/03). She and I have some things in common -- talent in mathematics and experience with academic hostility. We both earned Ph.D.'s and tenure at well-regarded academic institutions. But she did something I didn't do: she retained a lawyer.

I wish I had retained a lawyer long ago. Specifically, I should have retained one as soon as I made a formal complaint of sexual harassment against a senior colleague at Haverford College. Had I done so, I would surely be in a better financial and professional position now.

But I didn't. I thought I could handle it on my own. I thought my community would protect me. I bought into the false dichotomy between good and evil and decided that my institution was a good one and hence trustworthy. Most of all, I thought that hiring a lawyer was somehow shameful. It was a distasteful last resort, and I wasn't that desperate, was I?

But Haverford College had a lawyer, as did the mathematician I complained about. So even though the internal college grievance committee found that he was guilty of harassment and various other offenses against colleagues and students, he left with a confidential sweetheart deal -- five years of full pay and benefits. I was left intellectually isolated and wondering when the administration would get around to telling me what had happened.

For my own sake, I wish I had retained a lawyer. But I wish it also for the sake of my younger female colleagues. Lawyers, like them or not, are an important part of the culture of justice in our country. Administrators' actions tomorrow will be influenced by the lawsuits of today. A lawsuit, especially a successful one, has the positive effect of reminding those in power of the consequences of their choices. So Graciela Chichilnisky's suits are good news for the cause of fairness in the ivory tower.

Academically talented women should thank Prof. Chichilnisky for her bravery on their behalf. So should academics and administrators, if they are interested in a fair and welcoming climate for women. And no one should be ashamed of hiring a lawyer.

Sincerely,

Stephanie Frank Singer

Research Professor of Mathematics

Haverford College